ME and Ophelia

Monday, October 24, 2005

INTERMISSIONSix week rest break

On Oct 11, I only managed to half start my rest break due to unexpected visitors. Spent the following week tying up loose ends blogging wise and getting organised after three visits from doctor and nurse. Doctor confirmed once again still nothing can be done to help me. He said the M.E. will burn itself out. When?! (the answer is: how long is a piece of string?) I know some people who have severe M.E. for 20 years or more. He recommended Bach Rescue Remedy for stress and prescribed, for the first time (I've not taken any medicines at all during the past six years) fishoil capsules (pure with no cod liver oil), zinc (after I asked him about powered Magnesium) and multi vitamins in capsule and liquid form. They were delivered here by the Medical Centre on Friday morning.

Three different tablets, each to be taken three times a day with food, after fishoil capsule (as big as a horse tablet) in the morning with one tablespoon of multi vitamin liquid. After two days of taking them, I feel worse because stomach now hurts all day making me feel hot, cold and shivery, like I have food poisoning or something. Eating chocolate to make me feel better didn't help either :-)

It grieves me to give up blogging. At least I can use the break to write a few Christmas cards each day, catch up with emails and keep up with news online. Hey ho. Here we go. Six weeks of boring rest.

Will miss you.Bye bye. Love from Ingrid and Ophelia xx

Thinking of my 17 year old niece aboard the Royal Navy's top aircraft carrier. Watched TV coverage marking 200 year anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar. Saw a clipping from a movie about Horatio Nelson in which he was portrayed as saying you can't make peace with dictators, they have to be wiped out. It made me wonder about the regime in Khartoum and how Gandhi would not agree with such a statement.

P.S. Happy Halloween dear blogmates -here is a pumpkin for you to carve [thanks Richard!]http://www.toilette-humor.com/flash/carve_pumpkin.swf

Yesterday, Genocide Intervention Fund launched its new name Genocide Intervention Network (GF-Net). The more donations GI-Net receives from private citizens around the world, the more politicians will listen up and take note.

Right now, millions of women and children in the Sudan are suffering at the hands of Sudanese men while men around the world watch. Whatever name is given to it, genocide, ethnic cleansing - it is a crime against humanity.

Long time visitors to this blog will recall when I started blogging Darfur 18 months ago, the death toll was reportedly 10,000. Experts now estimate around 400,000 Darfuris have perished. 2.5 million Darfuris are still too frightened to go home and 3.5 million are now in need of food. Darfur is sliding into chaos. UN warns today there are just weeks left to save Darfur. For latest links see Sudan Watch. - - -

Note to self, the day has probably arrived when some blogs are used as a weapon of war. Propaganda blogs could easily entice bloggers to unwittingly link and spread disinformation that undermines mainstream media reports on countries like the Sudan where there is a media clampdown and no freedom of speech. - - -

This post may not make much sense to readers, or the Sudan Lobbying post at Coaliton for Darfur I am noting here with this excerpt about a U.S. public relations consultancy C-R International Llc hired by the Khartoum regime:

"The Government of Sudan has hired Mr. Robert J. Cabelly, managing director, C/R International, to lobby on its behalf.

Sudan is hiring this firm to help counteract the ongoing worldwide campaign against the government’s policy in the Darfur region of the country. This American company is taking money to wage a lobbying war against the hundreds of organizations and more than 130 million Americans who have voiced their concern about the situation in Sudan."

P.S.My father died ten years ago October 3. He was buried October 6.Sometimes I wonder what he looks like now.And imagine just a pile of bones.Covered with a metal comb and military buttons.He was buried in full uniform.We tucked his favourite comb in a top pocket.He had a good head of hair.Maybe his hair is still there.Together, he and my mother booked the double grave.My mother will be visiting me here November.Sometimes I wonder what she will look like -Laying on top of the metal comb, buttons and bones.Life is short.Be sure to live it to the full, while you can.